Tapan Kumar Sarkar (August 2, 1948 – March 12, 2021) was an Indian-American

electrical engineer Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

and professor emeritus at the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

. He was best known for his contributions to

computational electromagnetics Computational electromagnetics (CEM), computational electrodynamics or electromagnetic modeling is the process of modeling the interaction of electromagnetic fields with physical objects and the environment using computers. It typically involve ...

and antenna theory. Sarkar was the recipient of

IEEE Electromagnetics Award The IEEE Electromagnetics Award was established by the IEEE Board of Directors in 1996. This award is presented for outstanding contributions to electromagnetics theory, application or education. It may be presented to an individual only. Reci ...

in 2020.

Biography

Sarkar was born on August 2, 1948, in

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. He obtained his

Bachelor of Technology A Bachelor of Technology (BTech) is an undergraduate degree that is awarded for a higher education program in engineering. Countries Australia In Australia, the Bachelor of Technology degree is offered by RMIT University, Edith Cowan Univ ...

from

IIT Kharagpur The Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IIT Kharagpur or IIT-KGP) is a public institute of technology, research university, and autonomous institute established by the Government of India in Kharagpur, West Bengal. Founded in 1951, the in ...

and

Master of Engineering A Master of Engineering (abbreviated MEng, ME, M.E. or M.Eng.) is a Professional degree, professional master's degree in the field of engineering. International variations Australia In Australia, the Master of Engineering degree is a research ...

from

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English language, English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universiti ...

in 1969 and 1971, respectively. He received his

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

and

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

degrees from

in 1975. Between 1975 and 1976, Sarkar worked for TACO Division of

General Instrument General Instrument (GI) was an American electronics manufacturer based in Horsham, Pennsylvania, specializing in semiconductors and cable television equipment. They formed in New York City in 1923 as an electronics manufacturer. During the 1950s ...

. Between 1976 and 1985, he was a faculty member at

Rochester Institute of Technology The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private university, private research university in Henrietta, New York, a suburb of Rochester, New York, Rochester. It was founded in 1829. It is one of only two institute of technology, institut ...

; he also briefly held a research fellowship position at Gordon McKay Laboratory for Applied Sciences in

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in between 1977 and 1978. In 1985, he became a professor at Syracuse University and held the position until his death in 2021. Sarkar acted as an associate editor for the ''

IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility ''IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published bimonthly by the IEEE Electromagnetic Compatibility Society. It covers electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and electromagnetic interference, a ...

'' in between 1986 and 1989 and for ''

IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation ''IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the IEEE Antennas & Propagation Society. It covers research on and applications of all aspects of antenna technology and the propagation of ele ...

'' in between 2004 and 2010. He was the 2014 president of

IEEE Antennas & Propagation Society The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is an American 501(c)(3) public charity professional organization for electrical engineering, electronics engineering, and other related disciplines. The IEEE has a corporate office i ...

and the vice president of the Applied Computational Electromagnetics Society (ACES). Sarkar also served as board member for journals such as ''

Digital Signal Processing Digital signal processing (DSP) is the use of digital processing, such as by computers or more specialized digital signal processors, to perform a wide variety of signal processing operations. The digital signals processed in this manner are a ...

'', ''

Journal of Electromagnetic Waves and Applications The ''Journal of Electromagnetic Waves and Applications'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Taylor & Francis in 18 issues per year. It covers electromagnetic wave theory and its applications, including but not limited to wave prop ...

'' and ''

Microwave and Optical Technology Letters ''Microwave and Optical Technology Letters'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Wiley-Blackwell. The editor-in-chief is Kai Chang (Texas A&M University). The journal covers technology that operates in wavelengths ranging fr ...

''. Sarkar was the president of OHRN Enterprises, Inc., an incorporated business specializing in computer services and system analysis. He died on March 12, 2021, in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. With a population of 148,620 and a Syracuse metropolitan area, metropolitan area of 662,057, it is the fifth-most populated city and 13 ...

Research and awards

Sarkar's research interests focused on "numerical solutions of

operator Operator may refer to: Mathematics * A symbol indicating a mathematical operation * Logical operator or logical connective in mathematical logic * Operator (mathematics), mapping that acts on elements of a space to produce elements of another sp ...

equations arising in electromagnetics and

signal processing Signal processing is an electrical engineering subfield that focuses on analyzing, modifying and synthesizing ''signals'', such as audio signal processing, sound, image processing, images, Scalar potential, potential fields, Seismic tomograph ...

with application to system design." He is the author or co-author of more than 380 journal articles, as well as 16 books and, 32 book chapters. Along with his doctoral student Yingbo Hua, he developed the

generalized pencil-of-function method Generalized pencil-of-function method (GPOF), also known as matrix pencil method, is a signal processing technique for estimating a signal or extracting information with complex exponentials. Being similar to Prony and original pencil-of-function ...

for

signal estimation A signal is both the process and the result of transmission of data over some media accomplished by embedding some variation. Signals are important in multiple subject fields including signal processing, information theory and biology. In ...

with complex exponentials. Based on Sarkar's past work on the original pencil-of-function method, the technique is used in electromagnetic analyses of layered structures, antenna analysis and

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

signal processing. He is also the co-author of the general purpose electromagnetic solver,

HOBBIES A hobby is considered to be a regular activity that is done for enjoyment, typically during one's leisure time. Hobbies include collecting themed items and objects, engaging in creative and artistic pursuits, playing sports, or pursuing other ...

. In 2010, Sarkar was chosen as the IEEE Distinguished Lecturer in Antennas and Propagation Systems. In 2020, he received

"for contributions to the efficient and accurate solution of computational electromagnetic problems in frequency and time domain, and for research in adaptive antennas." He previously was the recipient of Best Paper Awards of the ''IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility'' in 1979 and National Radar Conference in the 1997. Sarkar received honorary doctorate degrees from

Blaise Pascal University Blaise Pascal University (), also known as Université Blaise Pascal, Clermont-Ferrand II, was a public university with its main campus in Clermont-Ferrand, France, with satellite locations in other parts of the region of Auvergne, including Vi ...

Technical University of Madrid The Technical University of Madrid or sometimes called Polytechnic University of Madrid (, UPM) is a public university, located in Madrid, Spain. It was founded in 1971 as the result of merging different Technical Schools of Engineering and Arc ...

and

Aalto University Aalto University (; ) is a public university, public research university located in Espoo, Finland. It was established in 2010 as a merger of three major Finnish universities: the Helsinki University of Technology, the Helsinki School of Economic ...

, respectively in 1998, 2004 and 2012.

Selected publications

;Journal articles * * * * * * * * * ;Books * * * * *

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sarkar, Tapan Kumar 1948 births 2021 deaths People from Kolkata Indian emigrants to the United States American electrical engineers Indian electrical engineers American telecommunications engineers Microwave engineers Electrical engineering academics IIT Kharagpur alumni University of New Brunswick alumni Syracuse University College of Engineering and Computer Science alumni Rochester Institute of Technology faculty Syracuse University faculty People from Syracuse, New York American engineering writers 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers 21st-century Indian non-fiction writers 20th-century Indian engineers 21st-century Indian engineers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American engineers 21st-century American engineers Fellows of the IEEE American textbook writers Indian textbook writers